Monday, April 24, 2017

It's currently the Season of Contrast at Get Messy, and the prompts and tutorials this season have provided a ton of inspiration. It's also been wonderful to have Amy Maricle from Mindful Art Studios as our guest artist for the season.

﻿This season I've returned to one of my little pocket notebooks. I started using this notebook when I joined Get Messy last year during the Season of Introspection. At that time I skipped around in the journal, so there are still quite a few pages left to fill. I decided to finish this journal with the Season of Contrast since I have spent some time digging deep and exploring contrasting thoughts and feelings.

﻿This is the first spread I created in Week 1. It's about revealing your true self and feeling exposed. The quote I wrote is from a commencement speech Neil Gaiman, an English author, gave to graduates at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia in 2012. I had scribbled this quote on a piece of paper and when I came across it again, I decided to watch the speech in its entirety. His words really resonated with me. Sometimes I'm afraid of exposing too much, but I'm learning every day that when you reveal your innermost thoughts and feelings and bare your heart and soul, it fosters deeper connections, a greater capacity for understanding, and true beauty.

This spread was inspired by a prompt from Vanessa exploring light and dark. I found this heart I had drawn in my scrap stash, and I decided to layer it on top of some string to illustrate how the light in my heart is a shield. When feelings of emptiness and sorrow creep in, the light always breaks through. I truly believe love is the greatest light in the world and will always overcome darkness. No matter how dark and terror-ridden the world seems, this source of light is much greater.

In Week 1, I was also inspired by Sasha's face printing tutorial. However, instead of a face, I used an image of a hummingbird. Creating this spread was quite meditative. All my thoughts quieted and I heard a hummingbird singing to me, or perhaps for me, in the silence.

Weeks 2 and 3 I didn't do much at all in my journal. During that time, I lost two members of my family and I was feeling pretty low. I didn't feel like doing anything. Still, I did manage to join the live webinar with Amy, and it was so relaxing to watch her work intuitively. It was so inspiring, and I made mental notes of her methods for mindfulness while creating.﻿ I found great comfort and peace while creating this spread and using some of the techniques she shared. Somehow mixing paint and making those repetitive marks helped heal my broken spirit.

In a separate journal, I used the leftover paint to create these messy florals. I decided to ditch the brushes and do some finger painting. I just love how it turned out. It was so intuitive. No planning, no second guessing. I just let it happen like Riet proposed in her intuitive painting tutorial. I enjoyed it so much, I might start a new series experimenting with the technique.

Overall, I am enjoying the Season of Contrast, but most of all the amazing art my fellow Get Messians have shared. Check out #seasonofcontrast and prepare to be blown away!
~Get Messy Art Journal is an art journaling program/community. We are a group of like minded art journalers who have come together under this art form to learn, share, practice our skills and push past our creative limits with hopes to inspire. Our community values consistent creating, encouragement and support, and trying new things. We would love to have you join us as a member of Get Messy Art Journal. Join Get Messy now!

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

One Year, Twelve Journals: This year I want to make it a habit to art journal on a regular basis. So, I've decided to create 12 art journals for myself, and my goal is to complete one for each month of the year.
In March I received a set of oil pastels from Art Bento Box, and I knew immediately I wanted to experiment with them in this journal. I haven't used oil pastels in a long time so I just had fun making patterns with them. I also enjoyed playing with layers and discovered a new way to add journaling to my pages.

"Holding On"{collage, oil pastel, and pen}

"Let Me Be"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, pen, and marker}

"Way Maker"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, and pen}

"Rise Again"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, and pen}

"Truly Yours"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, pen, and marker}

"It's Not Over Yet"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, pen, and marker}

"Broken"{collage, acrylic, oil pastel, pen, and marker}

Like my February journal, this one was all about experimentation and testing different techniques. My favorite bits in this journal are the overlay of writing and the pattern play. I know I will carry these elements on into my future work.

Sunday, April 9, 2017

Y'all, binding books may be my new favorite thing! It just makes your art journal or sketchbook that much more special knowing that you made it yourself. I followed the Long Stitch lesson in the Basic Bookbinding course from Vanessa at Get Messy Art Journal. I'm still searching for the perfect book with a decorative cover, but right now I have a couple nice sized books to work with.

The course is great for beginners! It features step by step instructions for four different book binding techniques: Pamphlet stitch, Long stitch, Coptic stitch, and French-link stitch. I didn't have some of the tools listed in the course, but I still managed to make it work with materials I had on hand. My journal has three signatures made up of four pages each, and I used embroidery floss to bind it.

I've decided to use it as a prayer/faith journal, and I've already collected some ephemera to use in it.

This is the very first page, and I just love it! I used mixed media paper to handle layers and layers of paint and collage. I'm just having so much fun experimenting with the techniques I learned during the Season of Art 101 at Get Messy.

Now, I'm on to the next one. Can't wait to try the Coptic stitch and French-link stitch too!
Have you ever tried book binding? What's your favorite stitch?
~Get Messy Art Journal is an art journaling program/community. We are a group of like minded art journalers who have come together under this art form to learn, share, practice our skills and push past our creative limits with hopes to inspire. Our community values consistent creating, encouragement and support, and trying new things. We would love to have you join us as a member of Get Messy Art Journal. Join Get Messy now!

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This page contains affiliate links to Get Messy Art Journal. This means that when you purchase a yearly membership using the link, I receive a small percentage. Get Messy is an amazing community of artists and creatives, and I encourage you to join. If you decide to do so, I truly thank you for your support!